In response to Sen. Mike Regan’s op-ed in The Morning Call on May 18th “Who is Making Pennsylvania’s Coronavirus Decisions,” I am writing to correct the record about the leadership of Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine.
Sen. Regan and others like him would like you to believe the governor isn’t listening to the experts when making decisions regarding COVID-19. At the same time, the senator wants you to deny the best available science from around the world and go back to life as if COVID-19 never happened.
As the leader of the Lehigh Valley’s LGBT community center, I know how dangerous opinions like Sen. Regan’s are. This is not our first virus, and LGBT people know how to survive a plague. First and foremost, we understand how important it is to listen to sound public health information, and Dr. Levine has provided critical information to keep us safe from this dangerous virus.
Dr. Levine is a pediatrician, yes. She also ran the pediatric department of one of the largest hospitals in the country. She is a fellow of the Academy of Pediatrics, a professor at the Pennsylvania State College of Medicine and served as physician general before she was confirmed with overwhelming bipartisan support as Pennsylvania’s secretary of health.
A thoughtful leader who is respected by her peers, she was elected president of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials. Her efforts spearheading the response to Pennsylvania’s opioid epidemic have led to a reduction of deaths from opioids, and this is work that continues to be a model for the nation.
The professionals at the Pennsylvania Department of Health are the leading experts in their fields. They have dedicated their careers to public health and the control of disease outbreaks. They are medical doctors, Ph.D.s in public health and epidemiology, nurses and emergency medical professionals.
They hold advanced degrees in emergency management, public health and epidemiology. They have been working day and night since before this dangerous virus reached Pennsylvania and continue to do so without reserve.
And their work has saved thousands of Pennsylvania lives. A recent study from Drexel University showed that by acting on the recommendations of this team, 7,000 lives were saved in Philadelphia alone.
Meanwhile, anti-transgender zealots have used Secretary Levine’s daily press briefings as platforms to attack her gender identity. This type of cruel, public display of bigotry has happened every day since this crisis began.
A journalist misgendered her three times on a press call. But rather than backing down, Dr. Levine doubles down on providing critical public health information to keep Pennsylvanians safe from COVID-19. That is leadership we should all be proud of.
Instead of holding rallies where people ignore social distancing rules and could put their lives and the lives of others in jeopardy, Sen. Regan should be thanking the dedicated employees of the Department of Health who will not stop working for Pennsylvania, and all Pennsylvanians.
We all want our lives back. We all miss our friends and our families. Many people want to be working. Many of us are lonely and feeling isolated.
This virus is wreaking havoc on our lives. Our anger and frustration should be directed at this dangerous virus that is taking many lives and causing harm to many more. Directing our anger at Dr. Levine and the hard-working employees of the Pennsylvania Department of Health will not keep us safe from this virus.
Adhering to the sound public health advice from our secretary of health will keep us safe.
Good people can have respectful policy discussions about when to reopen counties in Pennsylvania. But when a legislator questions our immensely qualified secretary of health and the dedicated team of public health experts working with her, we must call that out.
Secretary Levine demonstrates every day what calm leadership during a crisis looks like. I for one am very proud that she is Pennsylvania’s secretary of health.
Adrian Shanker is the founder and executive director of the Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center in Allentown.
